Rare Bird Alert weekly round-up: 27 Mar - 02 Apr 2013

The week's highlights
County Donegal’s Killybegs scores a Killdeer
Male Pallid Harrier graces Surrey countryside
Black-throated Thrush makes haste from Aberdeenshire
The immature drake Harlequin remains on the Outer Hebrides
Somerset’s Pied-billed Grebe hangs on for a few more days
Pacific Diver seen again in west Cornwall
Ireland holds on to American Coot and Northern Harrier
More spring overshoots appear, including sizeable arrival of White-spotted Bluethroats

Another chilly week in which the Easter Bunny would have been delighted to be clad in fur....high pressure ~ a montser high pressure ~ continued to dominate the weather scene and although most places saw decent spells of sunshine the temperatures maintained a cool air as the high continually sucked in a brisk easterly airflow over the country.

To a degree it hindered the migrant arrival schedule, but the birds will come...they always do and it is still pretty early ~ we’ve only just sneaked in to April ~ so as much as birders want to shake off the winter and get cracking on spring, they may have to hold their horses for a wee while longer.

There were no head-turning first day of April highlights, but anyone reading some of the broadsheets at the weekend may have done a double take (and date check) when seeing the headline “Twitcher takes over as Head of MI5....” the mind truly boggles at some hilarious scenarios with a few well known lsiters in charge of all things security-wise.....

....anyway...with thoughts of spies and spooks keeping a crafty eye on what’s hot to trot in the World of Rares this week, we’ll trundle onwards, ever onwards, towards the birds of the week

Headline birds
The two best birds of the week were in no way the rarest birds present around Britain and Ireland but they did refresh things somewhat and give renewed hope that a change was on the way.

First up, on Good Friday (it certainly would be a good Friday if you chanced upon it) was the Killdeer found at the north end of the estuary at Killybegs (Co. Donegal). Famously known far more for its larid pulling power, anyone who has paid a visit to the area will be well aware of how the Killybegs’ estuary always looks as if it could draw in a quality shorebird rarity ~ and its geographical position also points towards half a chance of producing something...

…and produce something it did ~ the first confirmed Killdeer in over two years (the most recent prior to this bird was one on Islay in January 2011) and it becomes a county first in to the bargain as well (and the 24th record for Ireland as a whole, from a grand total of 78 records in all).

This will become the 12th Killdeer to be found in March ~ of the 11 previous records, two were seen in Cambridgeshire (in 1959 and 1976, the latter year seeing three birds appearing countrywide during the month) and two have also been found in Shetland in March as well (in 1993 and 2008). The most recent mainland March record was Norfolk’s first Killdeer, found around the edge of Breydon Water at the end of the month in 2005, a bird which returned almost a year later, on the north Norfolk coast at Blakeney Freshmarsh.

The rise of the once uber-mega has been well documented of course, but it is still hard to believe that it was only 20 years ago since the species was recorded in twitching’s modern-day ~ an amazing five birds were found in 1993 (only the 4th to 8th records ever), though it wasn’t until 1995 that Britain’s listers really got the chance to unblock this fabled species, thanks to the summering 2nd year male on Orkney.

Now, the species is regarded as an annual visitor ~ since 2001 there has only been one blank year for Pallid Harrier here (2008) and there are now 64 accepted records.

Last week’s little breath of fresh rarity air, the super first-winter male Black-throated Thrush at Banchory (Aberdeenshire) did a bunk sometime during the day of 27th ~ present and correct in the morning viewing session but absent in the afternoon (and it hasn’t been seen since).

No such problems for admirers of the North Uist Harlequin ~ the young drake still present off Balranald at Traigh Iar for another week.

In Somerset, the Pied-billed Grebe continued its prolonged stay at Ham Wall RSPB reserve throughout the week while the Pacific Diver was again in Mount’s Bay (Cornwall) on 1st.

Back over in Ireland the American Coot was at Murlach in County Galway to 30th with the wintering juvenile female Northern Harrier still in residence at Tacumshin (Co. Wexford) to the same date.